jets

Israeli army carried out attacks east of Rafah city, demolitions east of Khan Younis; arrests reported during Israeli raid in occupied West Bank.

We have gotten two new images of the Chengdu Aircraft Corporation’s second ‘J-36’ heavy tactical jet airframe, which features significant changes over the first. The aircraft first emerged in late October. Along with new inlets and main landing gear, the addition of what appeared to be two-dimensional thrust vectoring across its bank of three engines was highly intriguing. Now we are seeing a rear aspect of this new exhaust configuration that further confirms our original analysis.

You can read our recent report on the new J-36 configuration here and our original deep dive on the J-36 here.

The new images show the J-36 from behind during landing and from directly below. The rear image is the star of the show here, as we can see what appears to be the jet’s three-pack of 2D thrust vectoring nozzles, similar to those found on the F-22. China has been developing this exhaust capability for some time now, but its addition on the J-36 is very interesting.

Generally speaking, thrust vectoring provides additional maneuverability throughout different areas of the flight envelope for a tactical jet, including, in many cases, in the post-stall regime. It also allows for better overall controllability and stability, the value of which is magnified on a highly unstable tailless fast jet design. It can also play a key role when operating at high altitudes, a performance goal that could be very beneficial to the J-36, as we discuss in our large analysis feature. At the same time, it adds weight and complexity to the aircraft, although this likely isn’t a major concern for a jet as large and complex as the J-36. It is also not as efficient as traditional conical exhausts when it comes to thrust output.

The first J-36, which emerged just 11 months ago, had recessed trough-like exhausts, vaguely similar to what was found on the YF-23. There is likely a low-observable (stealth) penalty from some rear aspects when trading the previous configuration for this new one.

The addition of thrust vectoring is a major design departure and clearly points to its advantages outweighing its costs. It also will raise the question, once again, about the intended role of this aircraft and how to define it. We went over this in great depth in our original analysis, but suffice it to say, keeping a certain level of maneuverability is likely seen as beneficial, but thrust vectoring provides other advantages beyond straight agility, as we discussed earlier.

All that being said, we still don’t know definitively if this second aircraft is purely evolutionary, depicting something that is truly a step closer to a final production configuration, or if it is experimental and we could see some of its features exchanged for those of the first model on future iterations.

It’s worth noting that the J-36’s smaller counterpart, the J-XDS, also features similar 2D thrust-vectoring capabilities. It’s additionally possible that the J-35, China’s medium stealth fighter, could one day ditch its serrated round exhausts and adopt 2D thrust vectoring, as well. We have seen such a configuration mocked up at Chinese arms expos.

With the one-year anniversary of the J-36 emerging from the shadows approaching, it’s remarkable just how much we have seen of it and how two prototype/demonstrator aircraft are now in known existence. It and the J-XDS, along with a flood of advanced uncrewed combat aircraft and naval aviation developments, mark 2025 as a truly remarkable year for Chinese military aviation, one that is clearly drawing concerns of potential adversaries.

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The Yantar, a notorious Russian spy ship, directed lasers at the crews of U.K. Royal Air Force aircraft in waters off the north of Scotland, the British government said today. While the Yantar has been a worrying presence around critical undersea infrastructure for years now, this development represents a concerning new trend, and one that could be very hazardous.

The alleged incident took place after a U.K. Royal Navy Type 23 frigate and Royal Air Force aircraft, including P-8A Poseidon MRA1 maritime patrol aircraft, were sent to monitor and track the vessel. Publicly available flight-tracking data suggests that Royal Air Force Typhoon fighters, supported by Voyager tankers, may also have been involved.

It’s not clear what kind of laser was used by the Yantar, but these encompass a wide range of systems, some of which can have significant power, at least enough to be a major concern. Depending on their output, lasers have the potential to temporarily obscure optics and the vision of personnel or cause permanent damage to both. More powerful laser weapons can burn holes in craft, damaging or destroying them, but are highly unlikely to have been installed on this vessel.

It is worth noting that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) has regularly been accused of using shipborne lasers to harass military aircraft, as you can read about here.

As for the Yantar, this vessel has been active off the coast of the United Kingdom for the last few weeks, according to the U.K. defense secretary, John Healey, who disclosed details of its activities today.

“This is a vessel designed for gathering intelligence and mapping our undersea cables,” Healey said.

Referring to the laser incident, the defense secretary described the Russian ship’s action as “deeply dangerous,” noting that this is the second time this year that the Yantar has deployed to British waters.

Healey continued: “My message to Russia and to Putin is this: we see you, we know what you’re doing, and if the Yantar travels south this week, we are ready.”

The Yantar is part of the Russian Defense Ministry fleet, being operated by the Main Directorate of Deep-Sea Research, a secretive branch that works on behalf of the Russian Navy and other agencies. The ship is around 112 feet long and, among other duties, operates as a mothership for uncrewed underwater vessels (UUVs), which can be used to investigate the seabed and potentially undertake sabotage and other activities, including manipulating objects on the seafloor.

As we have discussed in the past, the Yantar is officially classified as a Project 22010 “oceanographic research vessel,” but its specialized equipment can reportedly tap or cut submarine cables and investigate and retrieve objects from depths of up to 18,000 feet. The vessel is also likely to be able to place devices on the seabed that could cut cables long after the ship has moved on.

Russia has repeatedly claimed that the vessel is used for legitimate maritime “research” or “survey,” but it has an established pattern of operating around critical undersea infrastructure. In particular, it is assessed that the Yantar is used for surveilling the U.K.’s crucial network of undersea cables, around 60 of which branch out into the sea from the British Isles.

The U.K. Ministry of Defense has long considered the Yantar a spy ship and tracks it closely, leading to several run-ins with the vessel in the past.

In September, the U.K.’s National Security Strategy Committee stated that the government was being “too timid” in its approach to protecting British undersea cables, some of which also have a military role.

Meanwhile, another British government oversight body, the Defense Select Committee, recently concluded more broadly that the United Kingdom “must be willing to grasp the nettle and prioritize homeland defense and resilience.”

At the beginning of this year, the United Kingdom confirmed that one of its Royal Navy nuclear-powered submarines surfaced close to the Yantar, to make it clear it was being observed. The Yantar was sailing in British waters in November last year, when that incident occurred. Specifically, the Russian ship was said to be “detected loitering over U.K. critical undersea infrastructure.”

At one point, one of the Royal Navy’s Astute class attack submarines surfaced close to the Yantar “to make clear that we had been covertly monitoring its every move,” Healey said.

Tracking the Yantar is not necessarily a difficult job, since its position is typically broadcast at regular intervals using the automatic identification system (AIS), an automatic tracking system that uses transceivers on ships. This data is then also published by online ship tracking services. However, commercial tracking can be manipulated and spoofed, or it can just go dark, making the vessel harder to pinpoint.

At the same time, it should be noted that the vessel has been operating within the U.K.’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) but in international waters, which is entirely legal.

Earlier this year, the Yantar was reported in the Mediterranean. On this occasion, it was assumed to be involved in searching and potentially salvaging the wreck of the Russian cargo vessel MV Ursa Major, which sank after an apparent explosion in its engine room in late December.

🚨📸 Overview in the 🌊Alboran Sea on 16 January: the 🇷🇺Russian research vessel Yantar with the 🇺🇸American DDGH Paul Ignatius, then the 🇺🇸Ignatius with the 🇪🇸Spanish PSO Tornado.
With #NATO forces in the 🌊Mediterranean, the 🇷🇺Yantar passing Gibraltar illustrates that the… pic.twitter.com/h6fC64rKkB

— Russian Forces Spotter (@TiaFarris10) January 20, 2025

Back in 2018, the U.K. Royal Navy also escorted the Yantar through the English Channel as it headed into the North Sea. At this time, it was carrying a Saab SeaEye Tiger deep-sea robot on its deck. Russia acquired this underwater drone after the Kursk submarine disaster. It can reach depths of 3,280 feet.

A year before that, the Yantar was involved in a high-profile operation in 2017 when it sailed off the coast of Syria to recover the wreckage of two fighter jets, a Su-33 and a MiG-29KR, that crashed into the Mediterranean Sea during operations from Russia’s aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov.

While the reported use of a laser in a hostile capacity by the crew of the Yantar is a new development, its activity comes as NATO becomes increasingly concerned about apparent sabotage to undersea infrastructure carrying oil, gas, electricity, and the internet. More generally, the threat to undersea infrastructure, specifically data cables, is of growing concern internationally.

In the Baltic Sea alone, cables have been damaged on several occasions, with all of them carrying at least some of the hallmarks of sabotage. In the most notable event, on December 25 last year, an oil tanker dragging its anchor damaged a power cable running between Finland and Estonia.

The vessel responsible for that incident in the Baltic was the Russia-connected Eagle S. The oil tanker was reportedly found to be brimming with spy equipment after it was seized by authorities. Finnish authorities filed charges of aggravated sabotage and aggravated interference with telecommunications against members of its crew.

Incidents like this led to NATO launching Baltic Sentry, a mission intended to ensure the security of critical undersea infrastructure in the region. As you can read about here, the mission also involves crewed surface vessels, UUVs, and various aircraft.

The scale of the threat was apparent even before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, after which tensions between the Kremlin and the West heightened significantly.

“We are now seeing Russian underwater activity in the vicinity of undersea cables that I don’t believe we have ever seen,” U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Andrew Lennon, then serving as NATO’s top submarine officer, told The Washington Post back in December 2017. “Russia is clearly taking an interest in NATO and NATO nations’ undersea infrastructure.”

As Russia ramps up its hybrid warfare activities, which you can read more about here, the potential risk to undersea infrastructure is put into a much sharper focus. In many cases, such activities are deniable.

While NATO has long been aware of how difficult it can be to defend this kind of infrastructure against hostile actors, the apparent use of lasers by part of Russia’s spy fleet is another serious cause for concern.

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US president signals major arms deal before Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to the White House.

United States President Donald Trump says he will greenlight the sale of advanced F-35 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia, signalling a departure in how Washington handles sophisticated weapons transfers to Arab countries.

Trump made the announcement on Monday at the White House, just one day before Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is due to visit. “We’ll be selling F-35s,” the president told reporters, lauding Washington’s ties with Riyadh.

 “Yeah, I am planning on doing it. They want to buy them. They’ve been a great ally,” Trump said.

The decision marks a substantial win for Riyadh as Trump works to persuade Saudi Arabia to establish official ties with Israel as part of the Abraham Accords.

But Saudi officials have repeatedly reasserted the kingdom’s commitment to the Arab Peace Initiative, which conditions recognition of Israel on the establishment of a viable Palestinian state.

The potential arms deal between Washington and Riyadh raises questions about preserving Israel’s qualitative military edge, which is enshrined in US law. Some Israeli officials have already voiced opposition to the transfer of F-35 jets to Saudi Arabia.

The US has a decades-old commitment of ensuring Israel retains superior military capabilities over potential regional adversaries.

The principle, first established under President Lyndon Johnson in 1968 and formally adopted by President Ronald Reagan, has guided American arms sales in the Middle East for more than four decades.

Every US administration since has pledged to preserve Israel’s ability to emerge victorious against any likely combination of regional forces.

The F-35, manufactured by Lockheed Martin, is widely regarded as the world’s most advanced fighter jet, featuring technology that makes it difficult for enemy defences to detect.

Critics in Israel have warned the sale could erode the country’s longstanding military superiority in the region.

Yair Golan, an opposition politician and former deputy chief of the Israeli army, said the move risked opening “an arms race in the Middle East” that could undermine advantages Israel has held for decades. He also blasted Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government as being “failure-prone”.

“The qualitative military edge, which has been the cornerstone of Israel’s security for many decades, is being squandered,” Golan said.

Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir also said Israel must maintain its aerial superiority in the region.

“We are in the Middle East – we cannot get confused. We extend a hand to anyone who truly wants to extend a hand and not harm the State of Israel, but we must preserve our superiority,” he told the Jewish News Syndicate on Monday.

The timing of Trump’s announcement, just before Prince Mohammed’s visit to the White House, underscores the US administration’s efforts to deepen ties with Riyadh as part of its broader Middle East strategy.

Washington has historically managed concerns about Israel’s military edge by either downgrading weapons systems sold to Arab states or providing upgraded versions and additional equipment to Israel.

Prince Mohammed’s visit comes as the shaky ceasefire in Gaza continues amid near-daily Israeli violations.

On Monday, when asked about a potential F-35 deal with Riyadh, Trump invoked the US attack on Iran in June, which he said “obliterated” the country’s nuclear facilities.

Saudi Arabia was not involved in those strikes, but the kingdom’s official news agency, SPA, reported on Monday that Prince Mohammed received a handwritten letter from Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian before his trip to Washington – without providing details about its content.

If the F-35 sale materialises, Saudi Arabia would become the first Arab country in the F-35 programme.

In 2020, Trump approved the sale of F-35 jets to the United Arab Emirates after Abu Dhabi agreed to establish formal ties with Israel. But the deal fell through after Joe Biden succeeded Trump in 2021 amid concerns by US lawmakers over the security of the technology.

The US Congress can disapprove weapon sales authorised by the president and his secretary of state.

France and Ukraine have signed a declaration of intent for Kyiv to acquire up to 100 Rafale fighter jets and new-generation air defence systems. The agreement, signed by Emmanuel Macron and Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Paris, would mark Ukraine’s first purchase of Rafale aircraft.

New York Jets cornerback Kris Boyd remains in critical but stable condition a day after being shot in the abdomen in midtown Manhattan.

The New York Police Department has released surveillance images of a suspect wanted in connection with the shooting, which took place at approximately 2:06 a.m. Sunday in front of 156 West 38 St. in the Midtown South precinct.

“The sought individual is described as male, medium complexion,” the NYPD said in a statement emailed to The Times. “He was last seen wearing a black cap, black sweatshirt, black pants, multi-colored sneakers, and carrying a black bookbag.”

According to the NYPD, the suspect fled on foot traveling eastbound on West 38 St. Emergency medical services responded to the incident, the police said, and transported a 29-year-old male victim to NYC Health and Hospitals/Bellevue in critical but stable condition.

The office of New York Mayor Eric Adams was one of the first to identify Boyd as the victim.

“I am praying for New York Jets player Kris Boyd and his loved ones,” Adams wrote Sunday on social media. “Although we’ve gotten shootings to historic lows in our city, we must continue to work to end gun violence. Too many young lives have been tragically altered and cut short by this epidemic.”

The Jets, who had a bye in this week’s NFL schedule, said Sunday in a statement: “We are aware of the situation involving Kris Boyd and will have no further comment at this time.”

Boyd was selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the seventh round of the 2019 draft and has also played for the Arizona Cardinals and Houston Texans. Known primarily as a special teams player, Boyd signed a one-year, $1.6 million deal with the Jets this past offseason but was placed on the season-ending injured reserve list on Aug. 18 with a shoulder injury.

On Sunday, Jets linebacker Jermaine Johnson and defensive tackle Harrison Phillips offered prayers for their teammate on social media.

“Everybody please send prayers to my brother and teammate Kris Boyd and his family!!!” Johnson wrote. “Lord please hold your healing hand over Kris and guide him back to health and safety. Lord I ask that you please just get him through this safely.”

Phillips wrote: “Father God, we come to you right now, asking for your healing power over KB. You are a God of miracles. Lord, place your mighty hand on him as he fights lord God. Guide every doctor, nurse, and surgeon who touches him lord. Give his family strength! Kris is a fighter and we’re all here for him.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Nov. 17 (UPI) — Luxury air carrier Emirates will order dozens of new Boeing aircrafts in a deal worth tens of billions of dollars.

On Monday, Emirates said it ordered 65 additional new Boeing 777-9 planes worth $38 billion at list prices to bring its total to 315 orders for Boeing’s wide-body jets.

“This is a long-term commitment to our partnership with Boeing and to U.S. aerospace,” according to Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, chairman and CEO of Emirates Airline and Group.

The news arrived on opening day of the Dubai Airshow 2025.

“We are expanding our commitment,” added Al Maktoum in a statement.

Headquartered in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates — where Boeing opened a regional UAE office in 2015 — is the Boeing’s largest wide-body jet supplier.

Boeing said the 777-9 will be the world’s largest twin-engine jet, reduce fuel use and emissions by 20% and “set new standards in efficiency and passenger experience.”

“Already the world’s largest customer for GE90 and GP7200 engines, this additional GE9X order reflects Emirates’ confidence in our technology and our team,” Russell Stokes, president and CEO of commercial engines and services at GE Aerospace, told CNBC.

GE Aerospace is producing its GE 9X engines for Boeing’s 777-9. It takes the Emirate order to a rough 540 unit total, according to the company.

Stokes said GE Aerospace was “ready to support Emirates in every way to leverage the efficiency and durability of our industry-leading solutions and services.”

According to Boeing officials, the Arab region is anticipated to need nearly 3,000 new wide-body jets over the next 20 years.

Boeing currently struggles with production and certification issues and the Emirate order could impose delivery timeline hurdles into 2027.

Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump has pressed global companies to purchase Boeing aircrafts as a facet to trade talks in the move likely to be welcomed by the White House.

It arrived nearly two years to the date of Emirates’ 2023 announcement during Dubai’s 2023 Airshow it would buy some 95 wide-body Boeing jets in a $52 billion orderbook.

Nov. 16 (UPI) — New York Jets cornerback Kris Boyd is in critical condition with a bullet lodged in his lung after being shot early Sunday in midtown Manhattan, NYPD said.

Police responded to the Sei Less restaurant at on W. 38th St. near 7th Ave. at 2:09 a.m. EST to find Boyd, 29, with a gunshot to his abdomen. He was taken to a local hospital where he remains in critical condition.

Boyd was engaged in a fight when the shooting happened, police said.

A spokesperson for the Jets said in a statement that the team is aware of the shooting but “and will have no further comment at this time.”

The gunman fled the scene in a BMW X8 SUV, the New York Post reported.

A Mercedes-Benz Maybach also left the scene of the shooting, the paper said.

No arrests have been made in connection with the shooting and police continue to investigate, the said.

Boyd was selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the seventh round of the 2019 NFL Draft and, a native Texan, played his college football at the University of Texas in Austin.

He spent four seasons with the Vikings before being signed by the Arizona Cardinals in 2023, but was released later that season. He then spent two seasons with the Houston Texans practice squad after that.

In March, he signed a one-year deal with the Jets, but has been inactive since the summer due to an injury.

President Gustavo Petro says purchase of warplanes is a ‘deterrent weapon to achieve peace’ amid ‘messy’ geopolitics.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro has announced a $4.3bn deal to buy Swedish warplanes at a time when his country is locked in tension with the United States.

Speaking on Friday, Petro confirmed an agreement was reached with Sweden’s Saab aircraft manufacturer to buy 17 Gripen fighter jets, giving the first confirmation of the size and cost of the military acquisition that was initially announced in April.

“This is a deterrent weapon to achieve peace,” Petro said in a post on social media.

The purchase of warplanes comes as Colombia and much of remaining Latin America are on edge due to a US military build-up in the region, and as US forces carry out a campaign of deadly attacks on vessels in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific.

Washington claims – but has provided no evidence – that it has targeted drug smuggling vessels in its 20 confirmed attacks that have killed about 80 people so far in international waters.

Latin American leaders, legal scholars and rights groups have accused the US of carrying out extrajudicial killings of people who should face the courts if suspected of breaking laws related to drug smuggling.

US President Donald Trump has also accused both Petro and his Venezuelan counterpart, Nicolas Maduro, of being involved in the regional drug trade, a claim that both leaders have strenuously denied.

Petro said the new warplanes will be used to dissuade “aggression against Colombia, wherever it may come from”.

“In a world that is geopolitically messy,” he said, such aggression “can come from anywhere”.

The Colombian leader has for weeks traded insults with Donald Trump and said the ultimate goal of the US deployment in the region is to seize Venezuela’s oil wealth and destabilise Latin America.

Trump has long accused Venezuela’s Maduro of trafficking drugs and more recently branded Petro “an illegal drug leader” because of Colombia’s high level of cocaine production. Trump has also withdrawn US financial aid from Colombia and taken it off its list of countries seen as allies in fighting drug trafficking internationally.

Amid the war of words rumbling on between Washington and Bogota, Petro said last week that Colombia would suspend intelligence sharing with the US on combating drug trafficking, but officials in his government quickly rolled back that threat.

The AFP news agency reports that US and French firms had also tried to sell warplanes to Colombia, but, in the end, Bogota went with Sweden’s Saab.

Swedish Defence Minister Pal Jonson said Colombia was joining Sweden, Brazil and Thailand in choosing the Gripen fighter jet, and defence relations between Bogota and Stockholm would “deepen significantly” as a result.

🇸🇪🇨🇴I’m proud that Colombia today joins the Gripen E family, alongside Sweden, Brazil and Thailand. With the Colombian purchase of 17 Gripen E/F, our defence relations will deepen significantly & Colombia will receive one of the world’s greatest fighter jets. (1/4) pic.twitter.com/g0rESq69nD

— Pål Jonson (@PlJonson) November 14, 2025

Rookie Beckett Sennecke had his first two-goal game, Leo Carlsson extended his scoring streak to 10 games with two power-play goals, and the Ducks beat the Winnipeg Jets 4-1 on Sunday night for their seventh straight victory.

Cutter Gauthier and Chris Kreider had two assists apiece and Lukas Dostal made 23 saves for the first-place Ducks, who have scored 33 goals during their longest winning streak in two years. Anaheim wasn’t even slowed by playing at Vegas on Saturday, instead beating both of the Western Conference’s 2024-25 division champions during its first back-to-back set of the season.

The 19-year-old Sennecke had already solidified his spot on the Ducks’ roster before he scored in the first and second period against Winnipeg. He has six goals and five assists in his first 15 NHL games, answering any questions about whether the former No. 3 overall pick was ready to make the leap from juniors to the NHL.

Carlsson got his first two man-advantage goals of the season during his second consecutive two-goal game, giving him 19 points in 10 games and keeping him near the top of the NHL scoring race.

The 20-year-old Swedish center extended the longest scoring streak of his career with a goal in the first period. Carlsson added his 10th goal of the season during another man-advantage in the third, giving him five goals and seven points in the past three games.

Kyle Connor scored and Eric Comrie stopped 17 shots for the Jets, who have lost three straight. After winning nine of its previous 11 games, Winnipeg scored just two goals while getting swept in the California half of its current six-game road trip.

Sennecke opened the scoring with a one-timer from the slot off a no-look pass from Gauthier, and Carlsson converted an assist from Troy Terry.

Connor got his ninth goal early in the second period, but Sennecke converted a rebound seven minutes later.

Up next for the Ducks: at Colorado on Tuesday night.

Former New York Jets executive Scott Pioli, who also played a key role in Bill Belichick’s New England Patriots dynasty, gives his reaction to the Jets trading away defensive stars Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams at the NFL’s trade deadline.

WATCH: The Whole 10 Yards – NFL’s trade deadline (UK ONLY)